Invenergy Announces Expansion to Capacity & Investment to Grain Belt Express Line

By Benjamin Cox on July 12, 2022 at 8:33am

Two proposed routes for the Grain Belt Express.

A Chicago-based energy developer says a new plan will expand a transmission line’s power capacity.

Invenergy, the company planning to build the Grain Belt Express, now says the transmission project will have the capacity to carry 25% more power than originally planned, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

The planned enhancements for the project is now expected to attract about $7 billion in investment, up from earlier cost estimates at $2 billion. The capacity boost is expected to be able to deliver 5,000 megawatts for power of wind-generated electricity. The company says the amount of energy generated by the project will be roughly equivalent to 4 new nuclear power plants.

Invenergy says the transmission line will bring $7.5 billion in energy cost savings to power customers in Missouri and Illinois. The power line is expected to cross over the river from Missouri to Pike County and cut across Scott, Greene, and Macoupin counties on its way east to the Indiana border.

The Illinois Manufactuers Association announced their support of the project’s expansion yesterday in a joint meeting with IBEW and Associated Industries of Missouri.

The Post Dispatch says that Invenergy still needs to complete additional steps before construction can begin, including acquiring more land along its proposed route through Missouri and Illinois. The company says it owns 82% of the easements needed to begin its construction in Missouri

Invenergy says that the project will be built in phases starting with the first portion running from Kansas to Monroe County in northeast Missouri. No timeline on the project has been provided.